Dead or Alive
by Yami no Ryu
Summary: OMG! I updated! Chapter 5, up. One of the Reikai Tantei has committed a horrendous crime. And he had no control over it whatsoever. Now he's on the run. DISCONTINUED
1. Murder

Yu Yu Hakusho: Dead or Alive

Chapter 1: Murder

= = =

He looked at his hand. He hadn't done it! His handit had a mind of its own. He had done nothingnothing to spur on this_murder_. For that's what it was. He had killed a man in cold blood. He, a Reikai Tantei, had just committed murder.

It made his blood run cold.

He fled the scene. No one would knowno normal human anyway. 

"With great power comes great responsibility" was the saying he had heard once. Only now did he realize what it meant.

He had the responsibility to use it wisely, or foolishly.

He had done the former for most of his life. He wished it could have stayed that way.

It had started three days ago, when he began to realize that he couldn't control certain limbs at certain times. It was wrong, all wrong!

His hand had had a mind of its own.

He knew that soon the people would find the body, and there would be a search for the murderer in Ningenkai. Already there was a search in Reikai, he knew that much. He wasn't as stupid as he liked others to think. And he did have an honor code.

Murder went against it all.

It went against all common sense.

No, it went against all natural logic.

And the worst part wasit was not his fault!

He stared down at his clenched fist. Just minutes ago he had fired a very powerful Spirit Gun, strong enough to kill a middle-class demon. Definitely strong enough to kill a human.

But it was his hand, acting on its own, that had fired.

He wanted to cry out, "What the hell is going on here?!?" He wanted to scream at how wrong this was. He could do neither.

And he couldn't have controlled his hand.

It started three days ago, when the Reikai Tantei got a new mission. He decided to take it on his own, because from the description he wouldn't need help. He couldn't have been more wrong.

His enemy was an A-class youkai. He was an S-class Reikai Tantei. It would be close, but the youkai just borderlined A-class. Nothing much to worry about. But when he got there, and fought, it was different. His opponent was more into mind games then strength. It had been hell, but he was defeated eventually.

Apparently Koenma had alerted the others that he was having some trouble with the freaky psychic, and they had arrived just as the youkai had died.

~FLASHBACK~

With his last breath, the youkai glared at him. "I'll make you pay for this, Spirit Detective. Someday, you'll be the one running from them, you'll be the evil one. And you'll have nothing to do with it"

Then he sent a powerful blast of energy at the Spirit Detective, and died. Kurama, Hiei and Kuwabara burst into the room the two had been using as a battleground. He was exhausted, and when he saw them, he smiled, flashed a victory sign, and fainted.

~END FLASHBACK~

Now, he expected the energy blast had something to do with his recent trouble.

If he had known then, he wouldn't have killed the demon.

But he hadn't known, and it was only a matter of time until the Reikai police, Koenma, and his friends found out and he was a fugitive.

= = =

A/N: Ooh, I am SO evil. Can you guess who the guy is? Isn't it OBVIOUS? Especially by the flashback. But about the A-class and B-class things, I'm not sure if they apply, exist or anything. Just made it up. B-class is a youkai with power enough to be threatening.

I got the idea for this story from a picture. It's really cool, and I have it on my hard-drive. It has "him" and Kurama. He has his shirt torn and stuff and it basically looks as if he's been running from something. Just e-mail me at

k9pups@yahoo.com

if you want to see it.

I got the title from a song called "Dead or Alive" sung by the Japanese voice of Yusuke. The idea also partially came from another pic that has the Reikai Tantei with a "Wanted!" sign over their heads. That's a pretty neat pic as well.

Please leave a review!


	2. Fugitive

Yu Yu Hakusho: Dead or Alive

Chapter 2: Fugitive

= = =

He stopped a couple of miles from the crime, gasping to get air into his starved lungs. He didn't know what to do; not that there were many options left. The few he could think of were to submit to the police, admit he did it, or to run for the rest of his life, a fugitive. He didn't like the possibility of being put into a Reikai or Ningenkai jail cell for some number of years, but running from the law didn't seem like such a good idea either. For his term as Reikai Tantei, he had been fighting against murderers and thieves from Makai. Now he was one. The irony of it almost made him laugh.

But the situation was too dire for him to laugh.

Choosing his path with a cold sense of foreboding, he began to walk again, his pace slower and more thoughtful. He would stop by his house, say goodbye to his mom. It was the least he could do.

For the hundredth time, he looked down at his right hand. He clenched it into a fist, then let it relax again. He could control it now, but what about later? When he needed it to do what he wanted, would it do just the opposite?

He shook his head, trying to clear it of troubling thoughts, and focusing on the ones that mattered. Like staying away from the rest of the Reikai Tantei, and getting the hell out of Tokyo.

Unfortunately, the rest of the Reikai Tantei wanted to talk to him. And unfortunately he wasn't hiding his ki. Anyone with the slightest bit of spiritual awareness could have found him, and to the very-much-spiritually-aware Kuwabara leading Kurama and Hiei (who disappeared sometime during the hunt) he was very easy to find.

"Urameshi!"

When he heard his name, he began to run. The last thing he needed was the two redheads questioning him. Thankfully, Yusuke didn't sense Hiei in the general vincity.

"Yusuke, please stop!"

"No way in hell," he muttered under his breath.

But he was still exhausted from his earlier run, and this full-out sprint didn't help much. Soon he found himself slowing down, much to his chagrin. And Kurama was catching up (Kuwabara behind him a ways).

When Hiei jumped in front of him, he came to such a sudden halt that he tripped and fell. Reflecting as he picked himself off the ground, he thought he probably shouldn't have stopped. Hiei could have gotten out of his way as easily as he got in it.

"Dammit, Hiei. Was that necessary?" he asked in a growl.

"Hn," Hiei replied in true Hiei-fashion.

"We finally caught up," Kurama said, a slight pant in his voice.

"Yeah--Urameshi--why'd yah--run so fast?" Kuwabara wheezed. Once Kuwabara caught his breath, he said, "Anyway, we heard the weirdest thing from Koenma." Here Kuwabara looked to Kurama for confirmation. When he nodded, Kuwabara continued. "He said that the Reikai police found traces of your spirit energy on a newly-dead guy. They think you did it!"

"I didn't," he said flatly.

"Well, then. Who did?" Hiei asked curtly. Yusuke looked at him, surprised by the accusation in the tone.

"I don't know, but it wasn't me," Yusuke said again; this time his tone was defensive. Hiei snorted doubtfully, but said nothing. Yusuke had this odd feeling that Hiei knew more than he was telling.

"How could they accuse you?" Kuwabara asked. "You're a Reikai Tantei, after all!"

"Simple," Hiei said in that same curt fashion. "They could accuse him because there's evidence against him."

"Listen, shrimp, I know you don't like Urameshi and all, but you don't have to go accusing him of something he didn't do!" Kuwabara spat.

"Listen, KuwaBAKA, I'm not in the habit of not believing what my eyes tell me. If you want to know, ask the criminal," Hiei said calmly. Kuwabara looked skeptical, but that "what my eyes tell me" part got to him. So he turned to Yusuke.

"Urameshi, did you kill the guy or not?" he asked.

"I did NOT," Yusuke said. Hiei glared at him, as if daring to admit the truth. Yusuke glared back, that is, until he felt his right hand began to move.

__

Shit, he thought. _Not now, not now, not now, not now! I've GOTTA get out of here!_

Without wasting another minute, because he knew that soon he wouldn't be able to stop whatever was using his arm, he shoved past Kurama and ran as fast as he could, hoping he could control his arm until he was out of sight. It didn't go as planned.

A couple yards away, but still in his friend's line of sight, he lost it. But instead of letting his hand do as it pleased, he slammed the fist down into the ground, creating a crater at least 9 feet wide, with cracks spreading like a spider's web from the edges.

The Reikai Tantei watched in shock as Yusuke ran off and disappeared.

= = =

A/N: *sigh* Seems like this'll be 'nother long one. Not that I expected it to be short when I got the idea. Just an observation.

Oh, and any of you into Gundam Wing? I'm reading these great stories (1x2 shounen ai) by a certain Stormy. Go to 

to read some really great fics. *grin* Now that I've gone totally off-topic, see yah next update!


	3. Suspicions

Yu Yu Hakusho: Dead or Alive

Chapter 3: Suspicions

= = =

"Heleft," Kuwabara said, stunned. "Urameshi just ran off!"

"Hn," Hiei said, his eyes calculating and cold. "He ran like a frightened rabbit."

"He ran, yes," Kurama said, staring at the crater. "But not before letting his frustrations show."

Somehow, Kurama could not believe Yusuke would commit murder. It just wasn't in his nature.

When Koenma had told them that he suspected Yusuke of committing a murder, Kuwabara and Kurama hadn't believed him. Yusuke just didn't seem like a murderer. It was still unreal to Kurama. True, if anyone had told him nineteen years ago that the great Youko Kurama would fall prey to a insignificant hunter, he would have laughed it off and killed the demon who dared undersize him so. 

But he wasn't Youko Kurama anymore.

And he was concerned for his friend; one of his few true ones.

"At being caught," Hiei muttered darkly. Kurama brought himself out of his musings with a start and realized Hiei was referring to his earlier statement.

"Caught?" Kuwabara echoed.

"Yes, _caught_," Hiei said, with some contempt. Kurama recognized the 'what-are-you-deaf?' tone and though he would never admit it, he often thought the large carrot-top to be so. "I saw him earlier. I saw him kill that man."

Kurama and Kuwabara stood silent, processing this information. 

"Impossible," Kuwabara said firmly. "I don't think Urameshi did it."

Kurama respected his steadfast trust in Yusuke. He himself was starting to doubt. "All the evidence is against him," Kurama pointed out.

"So?" Kuwabara said.

Hiei sighed in exasperation, and disappeared.

"Where's the shrimp going?" Kuwabara asked.

Kurama shook his head. "Who knows?"

But truthfully, Kurama knew.

Hiei went to follow Yusuke.

* * *

__

Dammit! was all that ran through Yusuke's head as he ran towards Keiko's house. Knowing full well that school wasn't out yet (he had ditched _again_), he was hoping to leave a message for Keiko and a message for his mother with Keiko.

He opened Keiko's window and hopped in. Making sure that he still shielded his ki, he searched Keiko's house for paper. Easily finding two blank sheets, he began to write notes to both her and his mother.

* * *

Keiko was walking home from school, late as always. Being the class representative gave her certain responsibilities. And again, Yusuke was one of those responsibilities. _He's always giving our class a bad attendance average, _she thought, somewhat irritably. In truth, she couldn't be angry at Yusuke for long.

She opened the door to her house and stepped in. Tiredly, she dropped her bookbag in a chair when she noticed the two folded sheets of paper on the coffee table. One was addressed to her, the other to Atsuko. Keiko picked up the one addressed to her.

__

'Keiko,

You probably think I got into trouble again, huh? For once, you're right. I got into trouble, a LOT of trouble. I'll be leaving town for a while, don't know how long. I don't know if I'll come back. Sorry about this, Keiko.

I won't tell you what dire trouble I'm in 'cause, knowing Kuwabara, he'll tell you anyway. Please, it'd be easier if you just forgot about me.

Love,

Yusuke

P.S.: Please deliver the other letter to my mom. Thanks.'

Keiko read the letter three times before she believed it. She had always known that Yusuke was different, but what could he have done that he had to leave Tokyo? And why wouldn't he go to his mother himself? Why didn't he confront HER himself?

And forget about him? What was he THINKING?!?

What had he _done_?

__

Yusuke

* * *

Hiei had tracked Yusuke as far as Keiko's house. At the moment, she was reading something. He dismissed it and again began working on finding Yusuke's trail.

* * *

Kurama and Kuwabara had parted each other's company some time ago. Kurama was sitting in his chair at his house, contemplating their talk with Yusuke.

__

"I don't know, but it wasn't me."

Kurama hated to admit it, but it seemed as if it was indeed Yusuke who murdered the man. And besides, Hiei had _seen_ Yusuke do it. Kurama believed Hiei with all of his heart and mind, but something just didn't add up. Call it intuition, a sixth sense, or a friendship bond, but Kurama could not believe it was Yusuke who had committed the crime.

"Something in his voice, maybe," Kurama mused. "Or maybe, his eyes"

"Or maybe you just don't want to believe it."

Kurama looked up at his open window, where Hiei was perched.

"How did your search go?" he asked.

"I lost the traitor at Keiko's house," Hiei said. Kurama didn't like the way Hiei said 'traitor.'

"Yusuke isn't stupid. He can cover his tracks well, if he wanted to. And you aren't the only one looking," Kurama said.

"I know I'm not the only one looking. But the Ningenkai police couldn't find their hands in front of their faces. They're blind," Hiei said, stepping into the room. He sat down on the bed. "The Reikai police won't do much good either, if Urameshi doesn't want to be found."

"You could find him if you wanted to. It'd be all too easy if you used your Jagan," Kurama said smoothly. Hiei only 'hn'ed and looked away. "Even though you saw it, not even _you_ can believe Yusuke did it."

Hiei whipped his head around, almost snarling. Even though he knew the truth behind both statements, it didn't mean he had to agree. " You didn't see him. The way he raised his arm, the way he aimed--"

"The way his eyes widened in surprise?" Kurama suggested. Hiei glared at him.

__

The fox knows me too well, he thought.

"I _should_ know you, Hiei. I've known you for long enough, and vice versa," Kurama said. "I can determine things about people upon first meeting them that you couldn't even dream of. And though I trust your judgement, I know Yusuke couldn't have done it!"

"He's killed demons. What's to stop him from taking it one step further?" Hiei asked.

"We both know Yusuke is no killer," Kurama said quietly.

Hiei opened his mouth, but couldn't find anything to say. So he glared, and vaulted out the window. 

It was dark now, Kurama observed. It looked like it might rain. 

__

Yusuke, be careful.

= = =

A/N: How's my fic going? Do you like it, hate it? Are you utterly confused?

HeheI plead guilty to the last one too.

DISClAIMER: I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho. So all you nasty little lawyers with big nasty teeth, DON'T SUE!

POLL:

Do you want this to be a Hiei/Kurama shonen ai?

YES/NO

Please vote!

*holds up sign saying, "Please Feed the Authoress"*

JA!


	4. Rain

Yu Yu Hakusho: Dead or Alive

Chapter 4: Rain

= = =

__

Great, it's starting to rain, Yusuke thought. _Just what I need._

The light droplets of water fell on his upturned face. The sky was dark with gray clouds. Soon, the light drizzle turned into a storm, as if the heavens themselves were crying. Yusuke walked along the street, now thoroughly soaked. "I hate the rain," he muttered sourly.

"Interesting, since you're making no move to get out of it, kid."

Yusuke looked up to see a massive man standing in the way of his passage. He had a slight accent, chopping off his "g"s. Yusuke growled. "Get out of my way. I've had a bad day and I'm pissed."

"Not unless you pay the fee. A kid like you should have a simple 500 yen on you somewhere," the giant said.

"I said 'move'!" Yusuke snarled.

"Look, kid, give me the money or I'll force it outta yah!"

"I'd like to see you try."

"Fine, then!" The big guy rushed at Yusuke, who smirked and stayed put. He tensed his abs just as the guy punched him in his stomach. He just stood there and kept smiling. The man pulled his arm back, glaring. Then he lunged again.

Yusuke jumped up, dodging the blow. Then with a broadening smirk, he let gravity take over and landed hard on the guy's back. Yusuke used the guy's back as a springboard and jumped off it, front-flipping and landing on his feet to eye the stranger smugly.

"You said you were gonna force the money outta me, did you?" he sneered. "I don't see any forcing."

"Brat," the guy spat. "Son of a bitch!"

Yusuke's eyes flashed and narrowed. "You can insult me all you want, I'm sure I deserve it. But callin' my mother a bitch is going too far!"

He ran up to the guy and punched his stomach. The guy's eyes widened in pain. Yusuke punched him again and again, letting the frustrations of the day flow out through his fists. After a minute, he stopped, and the guy fell to the ground. Yusuke's normally slicked-back hair hung in front of his eyes, and his clothes stuck to his body, freezing him.

"Ass," Yusuke muttered. Then he continued walking through the downpour, hands stuffed into pockets. He was confused, tired, and angry, but he kept walking, his eyes downcast. Now that he didn't have to face anyone, he had to focus on getting out of the rain.

__

Where to go? he asked himself. _Where the hell to go?_

* * *

Kurama knocked on the door of the Yukimura's house. If Keiko had seen Yusuke, maybe she could give him some more information. He needed to know if Yusuke was guilty or innocent.

"Yes?" Keiko asked, opening the door. "Oh! Kurama! What brings you here?"

"May I come in?" Kurama asked, and waited for Keiko's nod before stepping into the house. "I was wondering if you'd seen Yusuke," Kurama said, removing his shoes.

"Yusuke?" Keiko said, frowning. "No. He left me a note, though. Why? What's wrong? What did he do?"

Kurama sighed, knowing she would not like what he had to say. "Yusuke has been accused of murder."

  
"_What_?" Keiko cried. "He couldn't have been!"

"I agree," Kurama said. "But all the evidence points to him. His reiki was on the dead man."

"Was he a demon, or a criminal of some kind?" Keiko asked immediately, hoping desperately that what she was hearing wasn't true.

"No. He was a human, completely innocent," Kurama replied. How he hated be the bearer of bad news.

"It can't be true," Keiko whispered, mouth agape.

"Hiei saw it," Kurama stated. "He's positive that it was Yusuke."

"He couldn't have," Keiko said. "He just _couldn't_ have! Not Yusuke; never Yusuke" 

Kurama didn't know what else to say. It seemed there was nothing he _could_ say. Keiko was staring off into space, her eyes wide. Then her gaze shifted back to Kurama. "Yusuke would _never_ kill anyone. He was mortified that he killed Toguro, back in the Dark Martial Arts Tournament! His sense of justice is strong, but his conscience is stronger. He would never kill anyone, _never_."

"I know," Kurama whispered. "I'm sorry."

Then he left.

* * *

Yusuke found himself sitting under a tree in a park. The rain had not let up, and it was beginning to get dark.

"God, I hate the rain," he said, shivering. He was truly at a loss as to where to go. At the moment, he was broke. That meant all public transportation was out of the question. He couldn't hitchhike, but walking in his condition would be hazardous. Especially with the weather as it was. "I'm broke, I'm hungry, I'm thirsty, and I'm tired. What a day"

Settling in as best he could, he closed his eyes and slept. And he began to dream

__

Yusuke crept down the street. It was late, but he recognized the area. I'm in the bad part of town_ he thought. The alleys were full of trash bags and other not-so-nice things, and tramps and drug sellers lined the streets. A girl came up to him then, scantily dressed._

She opened her mouth to say something, but he silenced her with a wave of his dagger. Dagger? I didn't know I had a dagger_ "I'm busy, so leave."_

The girl scampered away. He snorted. This makes no sensewhy am I here?_ He turned down an alley, frowning and wrinkling his nose at the stench. "Ugh. It smells like something died."_

Then he came upon what he was looking for. It was a door, and he slipped inside. He used a bit of spirit energy to create a warm glow around his finger and to light up his immediate surroundings. There were boxes everywhere, and in the middle of the room was a man.

"Who are you? What are you doing here?" he asked, getting up from his sitting position. For some strange reason, Yusuke smirked. He raised the dagger. What am I doing?

"I'm the devil who has come to take you to hell," he whispered, then threw the dagger with deadly accuracy. The blade was going so fast that it went straight through the man, finally coming to rest with a muffled thud in the wall. The man fell, dead or dying. Yusuke walked over to the wall and yanked the knife out.

He grinned at the blood that dripped off the handle. Most of the red liquid was on the wall rather than on the blade, which suited him just fine. Then he ran

Yusuke's eyes shot open, stunned and horrified. He felt a cold blast of wind on his face, making him shiver. He became aware that he was no long under the tree and that it wasn't raining.

He looked down, because there was something in his hand that felt crusty and flaky. Something that wasn't supposed to be there. Yusuke froze. _Nodear god, no_ In his hand was the dagger from his dream, silver blade shining, black handle crusted with dried blood. _My dreamit was_

His eyes widened in fear. _No_

He began to run, dropping the dagger. _No_

People stared at him, curious, as he barreled through them. He needed to get away from the peopletoo many people

__

NO!

= = =

A/N: OhDid I just write that? O.o I think I'm gonna haveta up the rating on this

Yami no Ryu

[Please review!]

(RSA: Random Shameless Advertising: Go read "The Price of Revenge", my Rurouni Kenshin fic!)


	5. Human

Yu Yu Hakusho: Dead or Alive

Chapter 5: Human

= = =

There was a gloomy air in Koenma's office. The Reikai's best detective, a fugitive. _How did this happen?_ Koenma asked himself, resisting the urge to pound his head against the desk in front of him. _Why, why, why, why?_

"Um, Koenma, sir?" Botan asked timidly, poking her head into his rather large office.

"Yes, Botan?" Koenma replied wearily.

"May I ask you something?"

"Sure. Make it quick."

"This question has been bugging me for a while now. Why are we after Yusuke?"

"He's a Tantei, Botan. He's our responsibility. And he's murdered someone."

"Yes, buthe's human, sir. The humans deal with their own affairs. Why would we be after him if he's not a demon?"

Koenma opened his mouth to reply, but closed it. Why _were_ they after a human, besides the fact that he was one of their Detectives? Yes, the fact that he was indeed a Reikai Tantei was hardly a matter to forget, but if they fired him, then that got rid of their problem. It would be the Ningenkai's problem.

"Why, indeed?"

Yusuke ran and ran and ran until he couldn't run any more. Then he continued to stumble on, trying as hard as he could to get away from the people. Even when he was miles away from the most crowded places in Tokyo, he kept going. He finally collapsed under a tree, letting the shade cool him down. He was exhausted, but didn't want to sleep for fear of another dream.

"What's happening to me?" Yusuke asked himself quietly. "Why am I acting like this?"

He received no answer. Not that he was expecting one, anyway.

After a few minutes' rest, Yusuke forced himself to his feet and trudged onward. Where he was going, he didn't know. Where he'd end up, he wasn't sure. All that was certain was that he couldn't stay in Tokyo; he couldn't be around people.

He needed to leave.

"Koenma-sama! I found the folders you asked for!" Botan bounced into the room, her blue pony-tail bobbing along behind her. She lay the folders on Koenma's desk, and he opened the first. After flipping through it, he opened the second. He read the contents of the first page, and looked up at Botan.

"Botan, find Raizen's file, around 17 years back. I need to double-check something."

Botan complied and came back with another manila folder. "Here, sir."

Koenma flipped through the large file until he came to the page he was looking for. Then he picked up the first folder and compared something between the two. Then he double-checked something in the second folder, and asked, "Botan, why didn't we do a full background check on Yusuke?"

"We did, sir."

"Did you find anything unusual?"

"No."

Koenma looked up at his assistant. "It seems our detective isn't quite human."

Botan blinked.

= = =

A/N: I know, I know! It was really short and took way too long in coming. I apologize. I must honestly blame this on laziness. And the fact thatthere is no other fact. I'm just plain lazy. So flame your heart out! I like flames. Very humorous, they are.

Ah, and the poll? The winner is no shonen-ai. Sorry, Dani-chan. If I slip-up and write something that hints, please, tell me. Or ignore it. Or both.

One last thing, I'm starting a mailing list. If you want to be on it, please e-mail me at k9pupsyahoo.com or leave a review. Thank you.

Yami no Ryu


End file.
